1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicular box structure provided inside a vehicle.
2. Description of the Related Art
Various kinds of box structures are used inside a vehicle. For example, Unexamined Japanese Patent Application No. 2005-280635 discloses a box structure having an upper lid and a bottom lid latched together and provided at the center console of a vehicle (see paragraph 0022). Unexamined Japanese Patent Application No. H10-315836 discloses a storage box removably provided on a floor. Further, there is a box structure provided below a vehicular seat.
According to Unexamined Japanese Patent Application No. 2007-145077, a box structure has first side member and second side member engaged with each other to assemble a box.
FIG. 5 shows an example of such engagement structure of those members, and a box body 101 made of synthetic resin or the like has an upper member 102 and a lower member 103 which are joined together. The upper member 102 has a plurality of protrusive pieces 104 formed at the bottom end and protruding in the lengthwise direction of the bottom end with predetermined intervals, and an engagement piece 105 having an engagement hole 106 is protrudingly provided between adjoining protrusive pieces 104.
The lower member 103 has a vertical rib 107 on the inner surface of an upper edge 103F corresponding to the protrusive piece 104, and the protrusive piece 104 is inserted between the vertical rib 107 and the upper edge 103F to regulate the positioning of the protrusive piece 104 in the inside-outside direction. The lower member 103 further has an engagement pawl 108 on the inner surface of the upper edge 103F and the engagement pawl 108 has an oblique guide rib 109 on the upper portion, and the engagement piece 105 is inserted inside the upper edge 103F to cause the engagement piece 108 to engage with the engagement hole 106, thereby preventing the upper and lower members 102, 103 from separating from each other.
According to the engagement structure shown in FIG. 5, because the vertical rib 107 and the engagement pawl 108 are alternately provided corresponding to the pieces 104, 105, shrinkage and waviness may be formed on the outer surface of the lower member 103 where the vertical rib 107 and the engagement pawl 108 are provided when molded, thereby degrading the commercial value. Moreover, because of the structure where the plurality of engagement pawls 108 are provided with intervals in the lengthwise direction of the upper edge, assembling becomes difficult if the plurality of engagement pawls 108 and the engagement pieces 105 are not engaged simultaneously, due to the individual dimensional accuracy of the engagement pieces 105 which engage with the respective engagement pawls 108. Furthermore, there is a tendency that the accuracy of engagement after assembling and the joining strength may vary.
The present invention has been made in view of the foregoing problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a vehicular box structure which suppresses any formation of local shrinkage and waviness, which facilitates the assembling thereof, and which can achieve a uniform engagement condition at all engaged portions.